Ottawa— Canada’s federal prison system is failing to meet the complex mental health needs of inmates, according to a new report by Correctional Investigator Ivan Zinger, who says weak policies, inadequate training, and a lack of specialized treatment have left prisons “fundamentally ill-equipped” to care for people in psychiatric distress.
In his final annual report before retiring in January, Zinger said it is “abundantly clear” that the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) cannot provide long-term psychiatric care within prison walls. He urged the federal government to transfer inmates with serious mental illnesses — including those experiencing suicidal thoughts or chronic self-harm — to external, secure psychiatric hospitals capable of providing appropriate treatment.
Zinger drew a comparison to how the system handles physical illnesses. “The CSC routinely transfers individuals requiring complex physical care, such as chemotherapy or heart surgery, to outside hospitals,” he wrote. “It would be unthinkable to attempt such procedures in-house. Yet when it comes to mental health, CSC continues under the misguided belief that it can provide specialized psychiatric care internally.”
The report is based on six national investigations and more than 425 interviews with inmates, correctional staff, and community stakeholders. It found widespread inconsistencies in policy, training, and screening, leading to what Zinger described as a “domino effect” of poor identification and limited access to care for those most in need.
Zinger also criticized the condition and mandate of CSC’s five Regional Treatment Centres (RTCs), describing them as “intermediate and geriatric care facilities” with limited capacity to respond to psychiatric emergencies. He recommended that the government reprofile the centres and transfer inmates with acute psychiatric needs to external facilities under Section 29 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act.
“Continuing to house these individuals in CSC-operated treatment centres is ineffective, inappropriate, and a clear violation of human rights,” the report stated.
Zinger also denounced the federal government’s plan to build a $1.3-billion replacement facility in the Atlantic region, calling it “a profound misallocation of resources.” Instead, he said, the money should have been used to expand access to secure psychiatric beds through partnerships with provincial health systems.
In its official response, the Correctional Service of Canada rejected Zinger’s recommendations, insisting it already operates a “comprehensive health system matched to level of need.” CSC said its facilities, including the RTCs, are accredited by Accreditation Canada, and noted its partnership with the Institut Philippe-Pinel de Montréal, which provides inpatient psychiatric care for inmates meeting specific criteria.
CSC acknowledged, however, that provincial hospitals have limited capacity to accommodate federal inmates with complex mental health and security requirements. It said it is conducting a comprehensive review of its treatment centres to ensure consistency and improve the balance between psychiatric, intermediate, and short-term medical care.
The agency defended its decision to proceed with the new Dorchester, N.B. facility, describing it as “a modern, bilingual, purpose-built health care facility” designed to support a patient-centred model of care.
Zinger’s parting message was blunt: Canada’s correctional system must stop trying to handle acute psychiatric care behind bars. “We would never perform open-heart surgery in a prison,” he said. “So why do we think we can treat severe mental illness there?”